NEWS & SENTINEL: Brooks speaks at regulatory meeting

A local expert on the impact of C8 in humans participated last week in a press conference about the Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017.

The act, which has passed the U.S. House and is pending in the U.S. Senate, changes the rules on how federal agencies administer regulations including toxic chemicals.

“The press conference was set up to derail” the act, said Dr. Paul Brooks, a medical authority on the health impact of C8, also known as PFOA, in people. C8 was once used by DuPont to make Teflon at the Washington Works.

A science panel analyzing the data of more than 70,000 residents in the region collected by Brooks’ company, Brookmar, said there is a possible link between the substance and six human diseases.

The press conference was broadcast on CSPAN on Thursday and was hosted by the Economic Policy Institute and the Coalition for Sensible Safeguards. Among other speakers were Amber Adamastos of Portland, Ore., Chrissy Christoferson of Bend, Ore., and Rachel Weintraub, a senior counsel and director of the Consumer Federation of America.

While regulations cannot be so strict nothing can be done to meet them, safeguards must be in place that people are not poisoned, according to Brooks. A major issue with C8, which has become a worldwide problem, is it is not a regulated chemical by the Environmental Protection Agency, he said.

“Can you believe that,” said Brooks, adding the data indicates no level of C8 in the blood is safe.

A solution appears to be filtration, which is not required, Brooks said.

Brooks recommended a procedure similar to that used by the pharmaceutical industry to bring a new drug to market to determine its impact on people.

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